Tanach · Rishonim on Tanach · Ibn Ezra · Torah
Ibn Ezra on Genesis 22:13/אבן עזרא על בראשית כ״ב:י״ג
אאחר נאחז. אחר שנאחז בסבך בקרניו, ואם הוא חי"ת נאחז קמוץ אז תחסר מלת "היה" וכן טעמו אחר היותו נאחז ורבים כמוהו, וי"מ כי אחר דבק עם "וישא אברהם את עיניו" ואילו היה כן היה אחרי, אחר כן, או אחרי זאת כמשפט הלשון בכל מוכרת:
1BEHIND HIM A RAM CAUGHT IN THE THICKET. Abraham beheld a ram after (achar) it had been caught in the thicket by its horns.21. This is ungrammatical. I.E. suggests that it be interpreted as if written, achar she-ne’echaz (after it had been caught). J.P.S. renders achar (after) as behind him. If the chet of ne’echaz (caught) is vocalized with a kamatz, then the word “was” is missing from the text and the meaning of the phrase is, after it was yet caught in the thicket.22 (caught) is vocalized with a pattach. When ne’echaz is so vocalized it is a third person perfect, meaning it was caught. However, there are texts in which ne’echaz is vocalized with a kamatz. In this instance ne’echaz is a participle, meaning it is caught. If this be the case, then the word “was” has to be inserted in the text to make sense out of the verse, as “was” followed by a participle is proper Hebrew. There are many other similar instances.23 { Aboth 1:2), literally translated, he was saying; i.e., he used to say. Others say that achar is connected to And Abraham lifted up his eyes.24 (after) as being connected to caught. This new interpretation suggests that achar concludes the first clause in our verse. This is the opinion of Rashi and Onkelos. According to them our verse reads: And Abraham lifted up his eyes after this. But if this were so, the word achar would have been followed by ken or zot,25. 38 and Filwarg. Our text is probably corrupt. The word achar is always in the construct. When achar is not in the construct it is written, achar ken or achar zot. Hence our verse should read achar ken. Since it does not, achar cannot be connected to the preceding clause but rather to what follows. as is the case whenever the word achar (after) indicates a pause.